This invention relates to a system used in a gas service station, where lubricant oil is extracted from automotive vehicles after use for proper treatment when they visit the gas service station for fuel refilling.
According to the statistics announced by Californian Authorities in 1988, annual consumption of the lubricant oil throughout U.S.A. was eight million tons, and it is now deemed that 57% of the above consumed oil has been abandoned. It is now feared that one-fourth of the above 57% might have been illegally abandoned. After formal and legal collection by treatment factories, only a part of the used oil is treated into diesel engine oil for reuse while remaining large part is used as fuel for burning. When this fuel is burned, calcium, barium and other additives which are included in the lubricant oil produce poisonous chemical compounds during burning, and such compounds are emitted in the air to contaminate the atmosphere. The consumed oil which is illegally and directly abandoned to the ground causes earth contamination. When the treated oil is used for diesel engine fuel, there is a bad influence on the engine which causes some engine trouble.
There are three factors which change the lubricant oil into waste material:
1Mixture of increased amount of impurities such as combustion remnants, incombustibles, water, gasoline, and metal dust. PA1 2Deterioration and wear of additive agents. PA1 3Deterioration of oil itself by oxidization.
According to the knowledge of the present inventor, about 90% of the change is caused by the mixture of the increased amount of impurities, and approximately 10% is caused by the deterioration and wear of additive agents, while the oil deterioration is not significant. Therefore, a large amount of the waste oil can be recycled as clean lubricant oil when the impurities are removed and additive agents are supplemented therein.
The lubricant oils which are presently used in automotive vehicles are high quality, and therefore the vehicles can be driven up to 100,000 kilo meters without exchanging the oil. The main object of oil exchange is to maintain good fuel consumption and to maintain compression braking ability. Lubricant oils where impurities are increased and additive agents are worn produce lower engine output and bad fuel consumption. At the same time, the solid impurities collect on the outlet valve seats and damage the sealing ability of the valves. This also reduces engine braking and engine efficiency during running. In order to avoid these situations, oil exchange is required after a proper running time period or a running distance.
In general, the oil exchange is now performed for all of the oil in an engine at one time in a gas service station or repairing factory after 3000.about.5000 kilo meters driving. However, this exchange system is not preferable because the degree of the contamination of the oil is very different between the initial time and the final time.